Many people try to make the phrase “no regrets” their motto, pushing aside thoughts about the past and focusing on the future.
However, not dwelling, but reflecting on past experiences, both positive and negative, can provide valuable lessons and insights that lead to personal growth.
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Protect my hearing and my teeth.
I would not use tobacco…. ever.
I should have left that creepy demeaning religion (Mormonism) 35 years earlier.
Spending more time with my animals. They were gone sooner than I expected and I regret every single time I complained about walking the dog or skipped a riding lesson because I was too busy moping in my room. Appreciate them while they’re there, or you’ll regret it forever like I do.
Walking away from toxic people.
Learning more languages and skills.
My grandfather is Mexican, and he tried to teach me Spanish when I was young, but I was never paying much attention.I’m trying to learn now, before I lose him.
Learning financial literacy.
Taking care of my teeth better and saved more money.
Turning down invites and opportunities to meet new people and travel to new places because I was too hung up on how I looked. I was so hard on myself. And to her I apologise.
Settling down with the wrong person too early.
Focusing on school and going to college for something I actually want to do.I’m 34 now, and while I make like 150k a year, I find my career to be a massive waste of time. I work crazy overtime hours and travel, leading to no life.The trades aren’t all they are cracked up to me.Hopefully next year I can enroll and shoot for a masters in psychology to be a therapist. F**k sacrificing life for a check. I have no kids and I’m newly single so now is the time.
Therapy. Should have started at 14 instead of 24, this would have prevented most of the dumb things I did.
Not traveling enough before having kids.
Ate healthily or at least with portion control. I developed bad eating habits because I was deprived of food growing up. I’m around 25 lbs heavier than my normal weight. I’ve always tried going on a diet but always fail.
Trying too hard to keep friends when they used me and took advantage of my kindness, I’ve learnt that not everyone wants to be your friend and I’m okay with that!
Being a better boyfriend to awesome girls i dated when younger.
Choosing myself.
Skipping travel. Missed adventures haunt me. Embrace every opportunity, folks!
Being accepting of who I am.Throwing off the religion I grew up with and my warped attitude towards sex.
I should have learned to play the guitar, I should have learned to play them drums.
Wearing a condom. I love my kids more than life itself. but life itself has been a lot different and harder than I thought.
Starting a gym routine, trying more activities and being more social.
Be a teenager. I was too eager to grow up and focused almost exclusively on work from 15-25 so I missed out on the whole thing.
Not getting help when I needed it the most.
Attending prom, graduation and other high school graduate activities. I was just so depressed at the time and didn’t think anyone would care if I wasn’t there.Now I’ll never get to experience those things.
Socializing and giving my own interests a chance.
Studying abroad when I was in college.
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Dumping my abusive ex before he belittled all of my interests. I’d have a stellar career right now if I did.
Not going to college when I had the chance.
Letting myself be pressured into being in a relationship with a much older man who was abusive. I was with this man who was in his late 50’s from when I was 21-25 and I wish I got out sooner. I feel like I wasted so much time with him but he would threaten me if I tried to leave him. I’ve been out of that relationship for almost 3 years now and still trying to heal.
I had a friend from college who did alot of comic conventions. He would always invite me and my at the time gf to travel with he and his wife. But my job had me working all the time which I had to do BC of bills….always bills to pay.He passed away some years ago and i regret not hanging out more. I wish I had just said “these bills will be here regardless, lets go.”
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Exploring my sexuality.
I think it would have been a great experience to have done a foreign exchange program in high school.
Researching my career path more. There are so many things I wish I did instead of spending 3 years in college, then 4 in university, only to still be unhappy in my career.
Enjoying the moment and feel my feelings.
Two things.- I regret not taking my education and future career more seriously.- And I regret not taking a chance at love with two different people at two different times, out of respect for a ‘bro code’ that hardly anyone ever even follows themselves and for people who didn’t even turn out to be long term friends.I’m not sure which one I would change if I could go back and do it over. One cancels out the other because if my life was a bit more focused and less wayward, I probably wouldn’t have even met these people that I still think about today. I’m gonna go with education and career. I feel like if I had chosen a way and worked on a comfortable life, everything else would be much better too.
I regret having a boyfriend. At that young age I should be playing with toys, doing homework and living my best life, not worrying about relationships.
Learning how to invest.
Fighting back and not take bullying. Learn ju jitsu and be able to defend myself.I wish I also really learned to use words to communicate with people and practice active listening and varying your approach based on personalities.
Learning how to sew.My mom had a sewing machine and made my clothes when I was little. She also made clothes for my Barbies. I was never interested and got frustrated the few times that she tried to teach me as a kid. We did a little sewing in high school, but my projects were pretty bad. Now, I wish that I could make my own clothes or even just alter/repair stuff. There really aren’t classes for sewing near me and I don’t learn well from video.
Finding a good friends group. I’d think I’d be a lot better of person if I had people who genuinely wanted to hang out with me. I was one of those kids where if you were in a room and someone would have to pick who they hung out with it wouldn’t be me most of the time and it still probably is like that other then my bf.
Not investing time in carving a better physical version of myself. I jumped in on the bandwagon quite late and it seems to be the perfect solution for most of my insecurities that I had harbored in my younger days. It alleviates so many problems of your life that it is something that everyone should embark on as early as possible in their lives !
Choosing to pursue my own interests rather than seeking my parents' approval—a liberating journey of self-discovery and authenticity.
Setting boundaries with my parents.
Graduating.
Learning how to fight.
I regret not getting a job. I was at home looking after my late mom and everyone else and doing ALL of the housework cause my sorry family thought that they were too good to do anything especially my late mom. She told me that my job was to look after them and do the housework forever. She didn’t cook didn’t clean didn’t do laundry and barely raised us. My siblings think they had a good life; I ain’t gonna stir the pot and start anything. I told them after our mom died that I won’t do anything like that again. It’s the parents job to look after the kids not the kids to look after themselves that’s just wrong.
Running away and getting emancipated at 16. However, my life at that time was in chaos due to abusive parents.
Not telling someone about my abusive sexually and physically abusive mom and step-dad so that I could of had an attempt at a normal childhood.
Looking back on how many opportunities I didn’t realize I had because I was an idiot and didn’t pick up what I now realize as heavy signals from girls to make a move.
Honestly, and this is going to sound terrible, but I kind of wish I was a lot meaner in high school, LOL 🤣 people needed to get told off more, and I was such a people pleaser.
Making more friends and networking.
Exploring hobbies and sport.
Play D&D. Got into it in my early 30s and all my friends have jobs or plans with their partners on the weekends so it takes months to find common time.
Never built or played in a treehouse.
I mean technically 1-2 years ago I was younger, id tell myself to be brutally honest & not second guess myself.
Getting good grades/academics.I’m now on my way to becoming an attorney. But not without a lot of difficulty. Much more than I would have endured had I been diligent in making good grades in the first place.
I wish wasn’t to passive to teachers in high school, I should of stood up for myself when they were abusing their power.
Investing in the stock market.
Leaving home.
Starting my career sooner.
Going to Australia when I was 18 like I was stuck in a dead end job, most embarrassing place to work in my life, and I still stayed in it. The team leader also threatened to ‘let me go’ in my probation period so I should’ve just left.
Could have been a bit more ambitious.
Buying $100 in Bitcoin when I was 14.
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